Niçoise Salad

Let's pretend we’re in Paris

Issue 42: From Sara Kate

A few weeks ago, stuck in a bit of a dinner rut (it happens to me, too) I looked over at my teenage daughter, fresh off a day of work at her first job, and sensed some doldrums. “What’s for dinner?” is a question I have probably heard a thousand times in my career as a mom. I don’t know where the clarity came from, but without missing a beat, I snapped back “Let’s pretend we’re in Paris!” 

We aren’t taking any trips this summer, so instead I’m making meals that remind us of places we’ve been or places we’d like to go together. Aside from the obvious “whisk me off to France!” element (and I know, Niçoise is from Nice, not Paris), this Niçoise (knee-swaaaz) appealed because it’s been so hot out and that’s when salad-for-dinner gets the most points. Still packed with protein (most recipes call for an egg per person but we are big boiled eggs people, so we add more) and lots of different textures and colors, everything about this meal feels rounded and pleasing. 

One of the hot tips for making a great Niçoise is to salt the heck out of the water you boil the potatoes in. Trust me, it makes a huge difference. You can even add some aromatics to the pot like crushed garlic cloves and a few stems of thyme, though I left that out of the recipe so it didn’t feel too overwhelming; it’s summer, afterall. 

This meal made me think for days later about the ways in which we make meaning with food and the ways in which preparing, serving and sharing it has deep resonance for an adult like me who has lived a full life connecting over food with other humans, whether in foreign countries and down the block. But for a young person like my daughter, maybe sometimes a salad is just a salad. 

For me, travel is so much about food; for those of us lucky enough to be able to venture to far-away lands, exposure to other ways of gathering, of eating, of combining flavors, is all part of the experience. How we bring those encounters home and how we can be in touch with such experiences without having to leave the house is the real exercise. 

Niçoise Salad
Serves 4

3-4 small waxy potatoes like new potatoes or Yukon Golds, sliced in 1/4 inch rounds (about 3/4 pounds)
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons kosher salt, divided
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon dry white wine vinegar, divided
8 ounces haricots verts or tender thin green beans, trimmed
4-6 large eggs
2 tablespoons minced shallot (from about 1/2 medium shallot)
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 anchovy filets, minced 
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
8-10 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 medium clove garlic, minced
4 handfuls loose-leaf lettuce, such as Boston, butter, oak leaf, etc.
10 ounces tuna packed in olive oil, drained and broken up with a fork
1/2 cup pitted black olives, such as Niçoise

Prepare an ice bath. Place the potatoes in a medium saucepan; cover with cold water and season with 1/4 cup kosher salt. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook until they feel tender when pierced with the tip of a paring knife, 3-4 minutes. Drain and carefully transfer the potatoes from the ice bath; let cool for about 30 seconds, then transfer to a medium bowl and drizzle with 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar. Reserve the saucepan.

Meanwhile, bring a separate saucepan of salted water (use all but 1/2 teaspoon of the remaining 3 tablespoons kosher salt) to a boil. Prepare another ice bath. Add the haricots verts to the boiling water; cook just barely, until bright green, about 90 seconds. Drain and immediately plunge into the ice bath to cool; drain, pat dry, and set aside.

Place a steamer basket or a mesh sieve that will hold the eggs in the reserved saucepan and add at least 1-inch water, but not too much as to touch the steamer. Cover, and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the eggs to the steamer basket, cover, and continue cooking for 9 minutes. Peel under cold running water.

In a lidded jar, combine the remaining 1/4 cup vinegar, shallot, mustard, anchovies, thyme, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and a few cracks of freshly ground black pepper. Shake to combine, then add the olive oil and shake vigorously to emulsify.

Toss the tomatoes in a small bowl with the garlic and a few cracks of freshly ground black pepper. Drizzle about 2 tablespoons dressing over the potatoes and turn to coat. Halve the peeled eggs.

Arrange a bed of lettuce on a large platter. Place the potatoes, haricots verts, hard-cooked eggs and tuna on top. Pour any juices from the tomatoes into the dressing, then add the tomatoes to the plates. Drizzle with the dressing and top with the tomatoes (and their juices) and the olives.